19th March 2009

Welcome to another week’s round-up of local music news. Did you see the sun this week? It seems spring is finally upon us and summer feels like it’s only around the corner. Good times indeed.

Last week we (wrexhammusic.co.uk) announced our 3rd birthday gig line-up at Central Station on Friday 3rd April. It’s a big show with two stages and 8 acts – you could say we’ve got major chuffties over the bands we’ve got playing and you’d be right. Local luminaries Camera will be headlining the main stage with a performance that will be previewing their long awaited forthcoming EP release as well as their crowd pleasing classic tracks. I for one cannot wait. If Camera weren’t enough of a tantalising incentive to come out and watch some live music, we have The Maydays, JKLMNO, No Room For Heroes, Parody, Juno and the Mook, The Witherdons and The Kids. All of this for a paltry £4 ticket – get them from Yales Café Bar in Wrexham or www.seetickets.com.

Talking about birthday gigs – last Wednesday was Rebellion’s 5th birthday show. The doors opened at 6pm and by 6:30pm they had 420 people in the building and by 8pm it was a sell out – no room for no more, not an inch – now that’s one decent turnout.

A new local music show has started on Calon FM, Wrexham’s community radio station. ‘Blood on the tracks’ is aired every Wednesday from 10pm to midnight and is repeated on Saturday night. The show will feature a number of local artists/bands each week and also a gig guide, so if you’d like some airplay, shoot them an email: info@calonfm.com.

Do you think local bands get enough airplay? There’s a petition floating around the interweb calling on radio stations to devote 10% of their airtime to local artists. Read more here: http://tinyurl.com/de7kb9.

I personally think our region is pretty much wealthy with opportunities to get your music on the airwaves and the BBC are particularly good – it is a public service after all. There’s the Adam Walton Mystery Tour show on BBC Radio Wales every Sunday night. Adam has been serving up local music on the radio since the early nineties and likes nothing more than receiving a decent quality mp3 of a local band in his inbox on a Sunday morning, email themysterytour@gmail.com. This Sunday he has The Roseville Band in session and Polly Mackey’s SXSW diary.

Bethan Elfyn’s BBC Radio 1 in Wales show ‘Introducing’ continues to play home-grown music and with her links to Huw Stephens and Steve Lamacq, there’s every possibility that they could pick up on the music as well. Send an mp3 to bethan.elfyn@bbc.co.uk and keep your fingers crossed.

New Wrexham band Juno and the Mook have their debut gig this Saturday. They have derived from the ashes of the much loved Little Caesar who disbanded last year. Brad Whyte left to join Gallops on guitar and the remaining members; Ben Hands, Mike Revell and Stu Duckett decided to take a few months off and reform with two new members as Juno and the Mook. I swear I could create a decent family tree of local bands, any takers? £5 a pop, laminated of course. Anyway, they are playing in the small but comfortable setting of the Prohibition Bar on the corner of Abbot Street in Wrexham. There’s no music on the ‘Mooks’ myspace (myspace.com/junoandthemook) as yet so what they sound like is a bit of a mystery. Its free entry and if you get there for 8pm you’ll get a decent viewing spec.

Tomorrow night, Telfords Warehouse have a particularly pleasing artist playing, ‘The Boy’. If you like The Beatles, Elliot Smith, Bowie, Robert Zimmerman, The Smiths, Weller, Leadbelly and The White Stripes then you’ll be into this. Suffice to say, that list probably covers about everyone’s taste in the world, apart from the diehard thrashcoredeathmetal nutters, obviously. The DJ for the evening will be the aforementioned Adam Walton and his Pet Sounds set, entry is free before 9pm and £4 thereafter.

I know what you’re thinking now; you’re asking yourself what in hell is happening at The Tiv this week. Well, it’s my job to tell you and I’m going to tell you right now. Ever heard of Trio Valore? No, I haven’t either but I’ve definitely heard of their members. They are a mod/funk supergroup featuring Damon Minchella (Bass – Ocean Colour Scene), Steve White (Drums – Paul Weller’s band and previously occasional Oasis appearances) and Seamus Beaghan (Keys – The Style Council). I can honestly say I’ve no idea what they sound like and I can only imagine. I’m thinking they probably sound as exciting as a car journey from Oxford to Glasgow. It could be worth watching for a nostalgia trip though. Its £8 on the door and doors are 8pm.

Email me at ben@wrexhammusic.co.uk with any news you may wish to share. Remember, don’t put anything rude or crude in the subject box – it’ll go straight into my spam box, never to be seen again. Take care.